Biglaw, Law Firm Mergers

Pillsbury And Chadbourne Talk Merger: Will Someone Finally Marry This Old Maid?

Looks like Pillsbury may finally have found the law firm of its dreams.

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It seems like Pillsbury’s been trying to find a merger partner forever. First it was Fulbright & Jaworski. After that fell through, talks heated up with Orrick. Then Orrick jilted Pillsbury at the altar. Then Winston & Strawn blew past the whole merger concept and decided to get the milk for free in a massive lateral raid.

So it’s with some trepidation that we report that Pillsbury and Chadbourne are looking at a merger.

But this time (don’t they always say that?) it’s really going to happen. They’ve got a website domain name and everything, and you know that’s real commitment because those cost around $15/year!

Seriously though, it’s hard to believe a firm would go this far with Pillsbury if it weren’t serious. And this will make for one more mega-merger in a year full of them. As Law360 reports:

If Pillsbury and its 700 attorneys decide to join forces with 330 attorney-strong Chadbourne, it would be one of the more notable law firm mergers in 2015, which has seen a record number of tie-ups, according to a June report by legal consultant Altman Weil Inc.

Following an unprecedented volume of deals in the first three months of 2015, a total of 18 mergers announced between April and June 30 put the legal industry ahead of pace to break the all-time annual record set in 2013, according to Altman Weil MergerLine data.

Obviously this is small potatoes next to the voracious growth of Dentons, taking on both Dacheng and McKenna this year, which is actually a hell of a thing: creating a 1,000-lawyer firm is f**king passé now.

But again, let’s not go crazy. The reported Orrick talks suggested that was a done deal too and we all know how that turned out. Revisiting my analysis when that deal fell apart:

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Often when a firm is hot for a merger, something’s not right. Pillsbury has a hefty number of partners relative to its size — almost a 1:1 ratio of partners to associates — so not much to offer their new partners in the way of leverage. And never underestimate the effect a merger can have on each partner’s bottom line: for example, the partners from one side or the other may have to pitch in a bunch more out-of-pocket to reach the capital contribution of their new colleagues. If Orrick and Pillsbury had some significant gaps there, it could have complicated the deal.

But maybe this will all work out this time and we’ll be toasting Pillsbury Chadbourne some time in the next couple months.

Then maybe Pillsbury can finally put away that Miss Havisham dress.

Pillsbury Winthrop, Chadbourne In Merger Talks [Law360]
Wake Up Call: Pillsbury and Chadbourne Talking About Merger [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA]

Earlier: Law Firm Merger Mania: Fulbright and Pillsbury Are Talking
Proposed Merger To Create New Top 10 U.S. Law Firm In The Making
Orrick And Pillsbury Call The Whole Thing Off
Winston & Strawn Pillages Pillsbury In Massive Lateral Raid
Law Firm Giant Adds Thousands Of Lawyers, Eyes Even More

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